I am so excited to say that I have lost 9 pounds in the last 17 days. I am also excited to say I got to eat oatmeal today for the first time in over 17 days. It's the little things in life that really do make us happy.
Well Kevin and I have decided that today we were going to splurge and eat out somewhere before starting on our second set of 17 days. I am not looking to go completely off plan and gain 5 of those pounds back today - we just decided that all along we had said "we can’t have that right now but we will be able to one day." Well today is one of those "one days". We haven't decided yet what we are going to eat. We have decided between pizza and Mexican. We want something flavorful and delicious. I have to keep telling myself that I am not rewarding myself for doing well with food. I am just proving to myself that I am not a complete diet nerd that has lost balance. I refuse to tell myself "you can never have . . .". God tells us in Colossians 2:19-23 “He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us. So, then, if with Christ you've put all that pretentious and infantile religion behind you, why do you let yourselves be bullied by it? "Don't touch this! Don't taste that! Don't go near this!" Do you think things that are here today and gone tomorrow are worth that kind of attention? Such things sound impressive if said in a deep enough voice. They even give the illusion of being pious and humble and ascetic. But they're just another way of showing off, making yourselves look important." The Message I refuse to say I cannot have pizza or chips and salsa because I can. I just don't need to eat them every day of the week. I am going to enjoy the foods we choose and test my self-control on stopping when I have eaten enough to be full.
Wish me luck! Guess I might want to add that to my blessing before I eat. "Thank you Father for these foods and help me Lord to not overindulge in them." I pray that for me today and I pray it for you too.
God Bless!
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Day 17! 1st part completed!
Well today is day number 17 on the 17 day diet. I have had several people ask me what is the 17 day diet. So I figured that I would give you a few of the details in the book since I have been looking over the next section of the diet which I will begin tomorrow.
The book was written by Dr. Mike Moreno who is a family medical doctor who came up with this plan to help people loose quickly the weight they picked up during the holiday season. The design of the diet is to “accelerate weight loss and launch you on the right path to health . . . and strengthen your body to fight fat." Even though the name of it is the 17 day diet – it isn’t over in 17 days. There are 4 sets of 17 day periods. The first set is the one I am just completing. In it you get to eat 2 fruits (from his list of acceptable fruits), 2 yogurts, 1 – 2 eggs or egg whites, lean chicken, fish, and turkey, and “cleansing” veggies (from the list he provides). Each of the lists of foods is long enough that you should find several things you like to eat on it. This diet does cut out all breads, potatoes, and sugars over the 1st 17 days. However, with that being said over the course of the next 3 sets of 17 day periods you will slowly add these types of food back into your diet. So you are not completely giving up anything. The diet is done in such a way that by the last set of 17 days you should be able to follow the diet during the week and then splurge and eat those sweet, rich foods in moderation on the weekend.
In my opinion it is gradually teaching you to eat a balance diet that we should be eating to remain healthy. I told Kevin that it is sort of like getting me back to the way I remember my grandparents eating when I was a kid. They eat an egg and a piece of bacon and a piece of toast every morning. Then for lunch they would usually eat only veggies and maybe a piece of bread. Then for dinner they would eat those same veggies and a piece of meat. Usually the weekends were the only time they splurge to eat out or make a fancy dessert. Then they would eat on that dessert during the weekend and maybe into the beginning of the next week till it was gone. However, in our generations we don’t have to wait till the weekend to go out to eat. Some weeks we have to wait till the weekend to try to stay at home and cook. We don’t ever have to wait for a sweet treat and we also don’t have many days where we don’t head into town for something. My grandparents went to town every Wed. and that was pretty much it. We are a generation that wants for nothing and even though at time that is a great thing it is a lousy teacher of moderation. We want for nothing!
The thing that I like about this diet is it is back to the basics. I am learning to eat healthy. I am learning that just because I can – doesn’t mean I should. I definitely have to draw on some self-control to do it. But this is where my relationship with God comes into this picture of the 17 Day Diet. God’s Word tells us that the fruit of the Spirit includes self-control. He also tells us in 1 John 5:21 “to keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your heart.” Well food had found a real high place in my heart. It has at times been my comfort instead of God. It has at times been my strength in times of weakness. It has at times been what I pulled out when I felt like I could not pull through. God isn’t pleased when we run to other things instead of Him. He also gives us free will to continue to go to those things. He is a jealous God but He is a gentle God and He is not going to force us to turn to Him. If He was going to force us to then what would we even need self-control for? I am thankful that God is teaching me these things even though I have to be stubborn and learn them the hard way. I just pray that God will let me really learn them and take them to heart so that I can move on to the next battle He has for me and stop fighting this one over and over again.
Meals for today: eggs, orange, bbq chiken, roasted carrots, apples, baked fish, snaps, yogurt
Exercise for today: Lifted weights for 45 minutes.
The book was written by Dr. Mike Moreno who is a family medical doctor who came up with this plan to help people loose quickly the weight they picked up during the holiday season. The design of the diet is to “accelerate weight loss and launch you on the right path to health . . . and strengthen your body to fight fat." Even though the name of it is the 17 day diet – it isn’t over in 17 days. There are 4 sets of 17 day periods. The first set is the one I am just completing. In it you get to eat 2 fruits (from his list of acceptable fruits), 2 yogurts, 1 – 2 eggs or egg whites, lean chicken, fish, and turkey, and “cleansing” veggies (from the list he provides). Each of the lists of foods is long enough that you should find several things you like to eat on it. This diet does cut out all breads, potatoes, and sugars over the 1st 17 days. However, with that being said over the course of the next 3 sets of 17 day periods you will slowly add these types of food back into your diet. So you are not completely giving up anything. The diet is done in such a way that by the last set of 17 days you should be able to follow the diet during the week and then splurge and eat those sweet, rich foods in moderation on the weekend.
In my opinion it is gradually teaching you to eat a balance diet that we should be eating to remain healthy. I told Kevin that it is sort of like getting me back to the way I remember my grandparents eating when I was a kid. They eat an egg and a piece of bacon and a piece of toast every morning. Then for lunch they would usually eat only veggies and maybe a piece of bread. Then for dinner they would eat those same veggies and a piece of meat. Usually the weekends were the only time they splurge to eat out or make a fancy dessert. Then they would eat on that dessert during the weekend and maybe into the beginning of the next week till it was gone. However, in our generations we don’t have to wait till the weekend to go out to eat. Some weeks we have to wait till the weekend to try to stay at home and cook. We don’t ever have to wait for a sweet treat and we also don’t have many days where we don’t head into town for something. My grandparents went to town every Wed. and that was pretty much it. We are a generation that wants for nothing and even though at time that is a great thing it is a lousy teacher of moderation. We want for nothing!
The thing that I like about this diet is it is back to the basics. I am learning to eat healthy. I am learning that just because I can – doesn’t mean I should. I definitely have to draw on some self-control to do it. But this is where my relationship with God comes into this picture of the 17 Day Diet. God’s Word tells us that the fruit of the Spirit includes self-control. He also tells us in 1 John 5:21 “to keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your heart.” Well food had found a real high place in my heart. It has at times been my comfort instead of God. It has at times been my strength in times of weakness. It has at times been what I pulled out when I felt like I could not pull through. God isn’t pleased when we run to other things instead of Him. He also gives us free will to continue to go to those things. He is a jealous God but He is a gentle God and He is not going to force us to turn to Him. If He was going to force us to then what would we even need self-control for? I am thankful that God is teaching me these things even though I have to be stubborn and learn them the hard way. I just pray that God will let me really learn them and take them to heart so that I can move on to the next battle He has for me and stop fighting this one over and over again.
Meals for today: eggs, orange, bbq chiken, roasted carrots, apples, baked fish, snaps, yogurt
Exercise for today: Lifted weights for 45 minutes.
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Day 16
Typical Tuesday. It really is the hardest day of the week. Everything is rushed. Every minute is accounted for and nothing is wasted. It causes me to set down at the very end of the day and wonder ~ why do I even try. This week the only difference was that we had revival (or as my son use to call it – survival) so I got to go to church a little later and got out a little later – but even those minutes were well used. I actually got to eat dinner at my kitchen table instead of in the parking lot at church or on the road as SAM drives. That was a bonus. However, even though Tuesday has been crazy – I have managed to stay on track.
I would like to take a minute to let you know of a wonderful event that we are having at our church this weekend. Theresa Church will be hosting the “Going Beyond Simulcast” presented by Priscilla Shire with music by Anthony Evans. This event is Friday night beginning at 8 pm and Sat. beginning at 10 am – 1:30 pm. (Sat. breakfast and snacks are provided) The cost for tickets are $15.00 or adults and $10.00 for public/private/homeschool/college students. Her topic she will focus on is Life Interrupted! Well I can say that there isn’t anyone here living on planet Earth that couldn’t benefit from a lesson on how to better handle life’s interruptions in a more Christ-like way. So if you get chance to come this weekend please come on out. Tickets will be available at the doors. I am hoping I can learn how I can come to the end of my Tuesdays and not want to bite someone’s head off or bite into something I don’t need to just to help feel better.
I am super excited about this event and hope if you get a chance to come either or both days that I will see you there! Maybe we can share a bag of apples or some other good for us food! God Bless!
Today’s meals: eggs, turkey loaves, tossed salad, apples, crock pot chicken, roasted carrots, yogurt
Exercise for today: 10 minute walk and a 40 minute run. It was a beautiful day for a run (or walk). However, I took off running in my sweat shirt and like to roasted to death before I got back home.
I would like to take a minute to let you know of a wonderful event that we are having at our church this weekend. Theresa Church will be hosting the “Going Beyond Simulcast” presented by Priscilla Shire with music by Anthony Evans. This event is Friday night beginning at 8 pm and Sat. beginning at 10 am – 1:30 pm. (Sat. breakfast and snacks are provided) The cost for tickets are $15.00 or adults and $10.00 for public/private/homeschool/college students. Her topic she will focus on is Life Interrupted! Well I can say that there isn’t anyone here living on planet Earth that couldn’t benefit from a lesson on how to better handle life’s interruptions in a more Christ-like way. So if you get chance to come this weekend please come on out. Tickets will be available at the doors. I am hoping I can learn how I can come to the end of my Tuesdays and not want to bite someone’s head off or bite into something I don’t need to just to help feel better.
I am super excited about this event and hope if you get a chance to come either or both days that I will see you there! Maybe we can share a bag of apples or some other good for us food! God Bless!
Today’s meals: eggs, turkey loaves, tossed salad, apples, crock pot chicken, roasted carrots, yogurt
Exercise for today: 10 minute walk and a 40 minute run. It was a beautiful day for a run (or walk). However, I took off running in my sweat shirt and like to roasted to death before I got back home.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Day 15
Two weeks down and now 2 more days to go. Kevin and I both are excited. We are excited to be able to eat some lean red meat and some sweet potatoes. Most especially we are excited to get oatmeal again. I have been making us homemade oatmeal with fruit for a while now and it is my favorite breakfast. However, the first 17 days of this diet we have not been allowed to eat oatmeal. The only bad part is we love almonds in our oatmeal and we can’t have those until the 3rd set of 17 days! Oh well. . . I will just have to make the oatmeal extra special good for the next 2 ½ weeks until we can have it with almonds.
Not much to tell today. It’s been a busy Monday with lots to do so I will keep this short and sweet. However, I would like to let you know that tomorrow on the Made To Crave website they will be showing a webinar about the Made To Crave book. They show them every Tuesday from 9 am till 6 pm on demand. If you get a chance to watch it I highly recommend it.
Today’s meals: eggs, salad w/ tuna steak chuncks, apple slices w/ a few grapes, yogurt, roasted veggies, mini turkey loaves, steamed veggies, & yogurt. (I have added the recipe for the turkey loaves and taco salad to my recipe page.)
Exercise: 45 minutes of weight lifting. Sure felt good to get back to the gym.
Not much to tell today. It’s been a busy Monday with lots to do so I will keep this short and sweet. However, I would like to let you know that tomorrow on the Made To Crave website they will be showing a webinar about the Made To Crave book. They show them every Tuesday from 9 am till 6 pm on demand. If you get a chance to watch it I highly recommend it.
Today’s meals: eggs, salad w/ tuna steak chuncks, apple slices w/ a few grapes, yogurt, roasted veggies, mini turkey loaves, steamed veggies, & yogurt. (I have added the recipe for the turkey loaves and taco salad to my recipe page.)
Exercise: 45 minutes of weight lifting. Sure felt good to get back to the gym.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Day 14 - the end of week two
Well today ends two weeks on this 17 Day Diet plan. However, today is also the day I had to make a choice to cheat yet again. It isn’t a bad thing. Not in my book at least. Today we celebrated my brother’s birthday with all of our family. I had called ahead yesterday and ask dad what he would be cooking. He told me pot roast, creamed potatoes, biscuits, gravy, broccoli & cheese, and pinto beans. Ok that means he isn’t planning to cook anything that I can eat but the broccoli but I really don’t need the cheese. So I asked him was he making a cake or did he want me to do that and he told me that he hadn’t gotten one and I could do that. Ok. I can do that too. So I talked with Kevin and said you know we are just going to have to plan to eat lunch tomorrow at dads and suck it up. I don’t want to offend him especially with it being Ray’s birthday lunch. So even though I didn’t stick to the diet during lunch today – that was the plan. I am ok with that.
So this morning I got up and fixed Kevin, Jesse and I eggs before church. I had already chopped up a bag of apples to eat during the fellowship time at church (rather than donuts). After getting home from church and before going to dad’s house I decided to eat my other fruit and a yogurt so that I would not be starving when I got there. Then at lunch I eat a little of everything. All that stuff listed above I got a few spoons of as well as a second biscuit. Kevin tried to stop me at the second biscuit, but I am sorry my dad is the best biscuit maker ever! It wasn’t about the fact that I haven’t had bread in two weeks; it was truly about my dad’s biscuits. Yum. I also eat a small piece of cake. As I said earlier even though it wasn’t on the diet – today it was in my plan so I am ok with that.
Tonight we had revival at church. We had choir practice and then family night dinner and then revival. Sam and I went to choir practice and then when it came time for dinner I decided that I could not handle another buffet so I decided to go to subway for a salad. I also grabbed a yogurt at the grocery store and headed back to church. Then I went in with everyone else and ate. I am sure I looked funny to some, odd to others and like a complete diet nerd to a few! I am alright with that too. They don’t have to step on the scales tomorrow and see what I weight. They don’t have to sit in my seat tonight and answer the nagging questions that would be bothering me right now either. Like – “did I have to eat all that?”, “did I need each of those desserts?”, “why do I even bother trying to diet when I eat like that?” You know the questions of regret you have when you have blown it again. So I will take a few odd stares and a couple of silly questions by my friends rather than answer those hard questions I would ask myself later when I came home or tomorrow when I stepped on the scale.
Right now I am roasting some veggies to snack on and have to eat tomorrow and other then what I have listed that is what I have eaten today. I did no exercise today and that is completely normal. I take that Sunday is a day of rest seriously & almost every Sunday and I come home and take a long Sunday afternoon nap. I would like to get a walk in sometimes but if I don’t I am ok with that too.
I hope that your Sunday has been a great one. I hope that you too are able to set where you are and be proud of the choices you made today. If not then tomorrow is a new day and His mercies are new every morning! Don’t let bad choices turn into bad habits that turn into a lifetime of regret. Choice today Whom you will serve and then live according to that choice! As for me and my household we choose the LORD! God Bless!
So this morning I got up and fixed Kevin, Jesse and I eggs before church. I had already chopped up a bag of apples to eat during the fellowship time at church (rather than donuts). After getting home from church and before going to dad’s house I decided to eat my other fruit and a yogurt so that I would not be starving when I got there. Then at lunch I eat a little of everything. All that stuff listed above I got a few spoons of as well as a second biscuit. Kevin tried to stop me at the second biscuit, but I am sorry my dad is the best biscuit maker ever! It wasn’t about the fact that I haven’t had bread in two weeks; it was truly about my dad’s biscuits. Yum. I also eat a small piece of cake. As I said earlier even though it wasn’t on the diet – today it was in my plan so I am ok with that.
Tonight we had revival at church. We had choir practice and then family night dinner and then revival. Sam and I went to choir practice and then when it came time for dinner I decided that I could not handle another buffet so I decided to go to subway for a salad. I also grabbed a yogurt at the grocery store and headed back to church. Then I went in with everyone else and ate. I am sure I looked funny to some, odd to others and like a complete diet nerd to a few! I am alright with that too. They don’t have to step on the scales tomorrow and see what I weight. They don’t have to sit in my seat tonight and answer the nagging questions that would be bothering me right now either. Like – “did I have to eat all that?”, “did I need each of those desserts?”, “why do I even bother trying to diet when I eat like that?” You know the questions of regret you have when you have blown it again. So I will take a few odd stares and a couple of silly questions by my friends rather than answer those hard questions I would ask myself later when I came home or tomorrow when I stepped on the scale.
Right now I am roasting some veggies to snack on and have to eat tomorrow and other then what I have listed that is what I have eaten today. I did no exercise today and that is completely normal. I take that Sunday is a day of rest seriously & almost every Sunday and I come home and take a long Sunday afternoon nap. I would like to get a walk in sometimes but if I don’t I am ok with that too.
I hope that your Sunday has been a great one. I hope that you too are able to set where you are and be proud of the choices you made today. If not then tomorrow is a new day and His mercies are new every morning! Don’t let bad choices turn into bad habits that turn into a lifetime of regret. Choice today Whom you will serve and then live according to that choice! As for me and my household we choose the LORD! God Bless!
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Day 13
First off I just got to say that today is Saturday and that makes today a great day no matter what. My teenage daughter may not agree with me though because she had a snow make up day at school today. I felt bad making her go but I’ve already been there and done that a couple of times this year. The bad thing about it today though was that our church youth were doing a stew fundraiser for their summer camp. This meant not many youth were their because of school and the parents had to do most of the work. The other bad part about that is ~ well fresh homemade stew! I have got to admit that today I cheated and I had one bowl of stew. After working with it all morning and coming home and smelling like it how could I not. Honestly, I am fine with it. I ate one bowl and with it I did not eat a grilled cheese like my daughter or peanut butter crackers like my son or even a half of a peanut butter sandwich like my husband. So there. . . I cheated a little and I cheated the lease!
Also, tonight my husband and I along with my daughter and her boyfriend went to the movies. We had a great time. Again, Kevin cheated a little and got a small popcorn. SAM on my other side had a bigger bag of popcorn. I sat between the two and ate nothing! It was hard for about 3 minutes and then it didn’t bother me.
Seeing as it is Sat. today’s post is short and sweet. Since I cheated I didn’t want to skip it because really I have no shame about it. It was just a really good bowl of stew. Tomorrow we are celebrating my brother’s birthday. That is going to be a different story. I’ve already prepared myself that I will again not be so strict as to not offend my daddy but I will have self-control. I will have to let you know how that goes tomorrow though.
Meals for today: apples, yogurt, eggs, stew, orange, tuna steak, snaps, yogurt
Exercise – up and walking from 7:30 – 11:30 at the stew. No official exercise but I do believe that counts!
Also, tonight my husband and I along with my daughter and her boyfriend went to the movies. We had a great time. Again, Kevin cheated a little and got a small popcorn. SAM on my other side had a bigger bag of popcorn. I sat between the two and ate nothing! It was hard for about 3 minutes and then it didn’t bother me.
Seeing as it is Sat. today’s post is short and sweet. Since I cheated I didn’t want to skip it because really I have no shame about it. It was just a really good bowl of stew. Tomorrow we are celebrating my brother’s birthday. That is going to be a different story. I’ve already prepared myself that I will again not be so strict as to not offend my daddy but I will have self-control. I will have to let you know how that goes tomorrow though.
Meals for today: apples, yogurt, eggs, stew, orange, tuna steak, snaps, yogurt
Exercise – up and walking from 7:30 – 11:30 at the stew. No official exercise but I do believe that counts!
Friday, March 25, 2011
Day 12
I posted a longer post earlier today. The last few nights I have been so rushed that I haven't got to put my words down quite like I wanted to because it has always been at the very end of the day. So today I decided to do that earlier - before my evening got away from me. So if you missed that post earlier today you can check that post out.
Today the only thing on my evening agenda has been - go for a run, cook dinner and be lazy. I have accomplished all three & I didn't even have to leave the comfort of my home. (well except for the run)
I got in a nice long run today. The weather was perfect for an afternoon run. Just a little cool and the sun was hiding behind some clouds and I didn't need sunglasses. It was a really great day for a run. I ran a little over a 5K. I miss calibrated my Itouch so I am not certain what the mileage was by my time was 48 minute so I know I did at least 3.5 miles. The weather was good, the music was good and I didn't have anywhere else I had to be. That makes for perfect conditions to just keep on going till your mind couldn't say anything else but "endurance, Father" and "breath, breath". I know that my run has been long enough when those two phrases are the only voices I hear in my head! I must say - it's a great feeling too!
Well todays meals were: fruit smoothie, apples, taco salad, tuna chunks, chicken breast w/ homemade BBQ sauce, snaps, roasted cauliflower and carrots.
Exerice for today: walked 10 minutes and ran for 48! Whoop Whoop!
Today the only thing on my evening agenda has been - go for a run, cook dinner and be lazy. I have accomplished all three & I didn't even have to leave the comfort of my home. (well except for the run)
I got in a nice long run today. The weather was perfect for an afternoon run. Just a little cool and the sun was hiding behind some clouds and I didn't need sunglasses. It was a really great day for a run. I ran a little over a 5K. I miss calibrated my Itouch so I am not certain what the mileage was by my time was 48 minute so I know I did at least 3.5 miles. The weather was good, the music was good and I didn't have anywhere else I had to be. That makes for perfect conditions to just keep on going till your mind couldn't say anything else but "endurance, Father" and "breath, breath". I know that my run has been long enough when those two phrases are the only voices I hear in my head! I must say - it's a great feeling too!
Well todays meals were: fruit smoothie, apples, taco salad, tuna chunks, chicken breast w/ homemade BBQ sauce, snaps, roasted cauliflower and carrots.
Exerice for today: walked 10 minutes and ran for 48! Whoop Whoop!
Just a special note
Dictionary.com defines the word purge as: to rid of whatever is impure or undesirable; cleanse; purify. I know when you think of losing weight and hear the term purge the first thing you think of is an eating disorder such as anorexia or bulimia. However, please keep in mind when I mention it in this post that is not what I am speaking of. I can honestly say that I have eaten each day and I have not purged in that sense of dieting. However, with that stated I would like to tell you about something that I have realized this week. When you purge your diet the thing that is going to come up is going to be emotional. In other words when you purge your diet (to rid it of impure & undesirable foods, to cleanse and purify what foods you do eat) of process foods, sugars, fast foods, and the like the one thing that is sure to come up will be emotional.
For one if you are anything like me your flesh is like a 2 year old when it comes to the sweet treats that you come across during the day. There are coffee shops, donut shops, & friends with goodies around every corner. There are days when you eat out of habit and when you tell your body NO and continue to tell it NO it doesn’t like you very much. It wants to react in ways like short temperedness, pouting, maybe even a little dirt kicking.
For me another thing I am realizing is that on my bad days, sad days, overwhelmed days, over worked days, underappreciated days I turn to food. Why? Because I desire “it.” Whatever the “it” may be. These last few weeks I have purged my diet of all those comfort foods, all those “it” things that I once used to make me feel better. For me it has meant that I have had to deal with some emotions over this last few weeks. The other day I was driving in my car all alone and I was praying and all of a sudden my prayers for others turned into confessions and prayers about me. I thought out loud to myself (& God) where is all of this coming from. I was just so overwhelmed with sorrow and conviction and in that moment it was as if God whispered to me “Tina, I have been trying to deal with you about this for a long time now but you wouldn’t turn to me – you would turn to food and sometimes you would turn to sleep both to comfort you but they have lied to you because they haven’t comforted you at all. They made you empty promises that didn’t fill you in quite the way you thought they would.” “Ouch. . . Father. . .That hurt,” was my reply. He was right. Dead on. Now that I have taken all the comfort foods out I can see clearly that fact. I now have to deal with some stuff that before I just stuffed food on top of. Girls, (and guys) that isn’t easy. However, it is as necessary to my getting healthy as eating the right stuff. So as you read my blogs and think about this diet or any other diet for that matter please remember what I have said. When you have been using food as a crutch as I have and then you take it away there are going to be days when you feel like an emotional mess. Don’t be surprised at your flesh for not wanting to play nice when it is used to getting what it wants. However, don’t let it get the best of you. God is bigger. He is stronger. He can handle whatever problem you have. He will forgive whatever wrong you have done. You just have to do your part and let go of your “idle” and let God be your comfort, shelter, hiding place, strong tower, and your place of rest.
“Dear Children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your heart.” 1 John 5:21
“But I trust in the Lord God to save me, & I will wait for Him to answer my prayer.” Micah 7:7
“The Lord your God carried you as a man carries his son, in all the way you went until you came to this place.” Deut. 1:31
“Christ has set you free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.” Gal. 5:1
For one if you are anything like me your flesh is like a 2 year old when it comes to the sweet treats that you come across during the day. There are coffee shops, donut shops, & friends with goodies around every corner. There are days when you eat out of habit and when you tell your body NO and continue to tell it NO it doesn’t like you very much. It wants to react in ways like short temperedness, pouting, maybe even a little dirt kicking.
For me another thing I am realizing is that on my bad days, sad days, overwhelmed days, over worked days, underappreciated days I turn to food. Why? Because I desire “it.” Whatever the “it” may be. These last few weeks I have purged my diet of all those comfort foods, all those “it” things that I once used to make me feel better. For me it has meant that I have had to deal with some emotions over this last few weeks. The other day I was driving in my car all alone and I was praying and all of a sudden my prayers for others turned into confessions and prayers about me. I thought out loud to myself (& God) where is all of this coming from. I was just so overwhelmed with sorrow and conviction and in that moment it was as if God whispered to me “Tina, I have been trying to deal with you about this for a long time now but you wouldn’t turn to me – you would turn to food and sometimes you would turn to sleep both to comfort you but they have lied to you because they haven’t comforted you at all. They made you empty promises that didn’t fill you in quite the way you thought they would.” “Ouch. . . Father. . .That hurt,” was my reply. He was right. Dead on. Now that I have taken all the comfort foods out I can see clearly that fact. I now have to deal with some stuff that before I just stuffed food on top of. Girls, (and guys) that isn’t easy. However, it is as necessary to my getting healthy as eating the right stuff. So as you read my blogs and think about this diet or any other diet for that matter please remember what I have said. When you have been using food as a crutch as I have and then you take it away there are going to be days when you feel like an emotional mess. Don’t be surprised at your flesh for not wanting to play nice when it is used to getting what it wants. However, don’t let it get the best of you. God is bigger. He is stronger. He can handle whatever problem you have. He will forgive whatever wrong you have done. You just have to do your part and let go of your “idle” and let God be your comfort, shelter, hiding place, strong tower, and your place of rest.
“Dear Children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your heart.” 1 John 5:21
“But I trust in the Lord God to save me, & I will wait for Him to answer my prayer.” Micah 7:7
“The Lord your God carried you as a man carries his son, in all the way you went until you came to this place.” Deut. 1:31
“Christ has set you free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.” Gal. 5:1
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Day 11
Today is Thursday. Today is supposed to be my “don’t have much to do” day. Well that is not the truth today. My day started bright an early with a promise. However, this promise was not to me. . . this promise was to my husband. I had promised him taco salad for dinner. He has endured fish one to many nights and I felt sure he needed a pick me up. Honestly, he did not have to go on this journey with me. He was in no real need to lose any weight. He did not have to give up his fast food and chips and favorite snacks. However, he has and I figured I could do this for him. However, I also knew that both children had different events today and they both were on separate sides of the state line. Jes had ball practice in Va. and SAM had National Honor Society induction in NC. We all had haircuts before for we had to scramble to go our separate ways. So I did what most folks wouldn’t dream of doing. I got up this morning and cooked dinner before I went to work! Now please remember that I have said all along that the most important thing in doing this diet in my eyes was planning. Well getting taco salad for dinner without going to Taco Bell meant doing it before work. So as I did my morning reading I also cooked onions and peppers and browned turkey meat. After it was all done I let it cool and put it all back in the fridge for Kevin when he came home before practice. Well as luck would have it – he still didn’t have time to eat till he and I both got home after everyone’s events. So Taco Salad was cooked before 8 am and not eaten till after 8 pm. Oh well – no one went by Taco Bell or McDonalds or anything else like that. Just knowing dinner was there waiting made the waiting easier to bear.
I found something special today when glanced over a daily devotional that I missed reading yesterday (from being busy). The verse for yesterday was Proverbs 31:27. It truly made me laugh at myself and say “Well Lord I am there today and yesterday when I missed it”. This verse says “She watches over the activities of her household and is never idle.“ The NEVER IDLE thing sure did ring true to me. It also blessed my heart because the one thing I promised God that I wanted to do during this season of Lent was to be still and know Him. I wanted to read His word each day and slow down to focus on Him. This morning I felt guilty about not giving Him my full attention because I was cooking as I read. I read this verse about 20 minutes later and it was as if God was saying to me “Tina, I see you. I know that you are trying and I understand. Today even though you weren’t “still” you were “still in my will”. See Tina, right there in Proverbs 31:27. You were still in my will.” It was almost like I received a big hug! Now I know that He doesn’t want me cooking and saying I am being still with Him every morning but this morning I knew it was ok. This morning I was honoring Him by honoring my husband. God didn’t have to let me off the hook for not sitting still before Him but He loved me enough to show me this morning to comfort my anxious heart about it. Isn’t that amazing? Isn’t He Amazing! Just like the love of a Father!
So today was super busy but I managed to stay on course.
Here are my meals today: fruit smoothie, apple, salad with grilled tuna, few chunks of tuna (for snack), taco salad and 2nd helping of taco salad.
My exercise for today I squeezed in between haircut and dropping SAM off for National Honor Society practice and the actual ceremony. I did about 40 minutes of lifting weights.
I found something special today when glanced over a daily devotional that I missed reading yesterday (from being busy). The verse for yesterday was Proverbs 31:27. It truly made me laugh at myself and say “Well Lord I am there today and yesterday when I missed it”. This verse says “She watches over the activities of her household and is never idle.“ The NEVER IDLE thing sure did ring true to me. It also blessed my heart because the one thing I promised God that I wanted to do during this season of Lent was to be still and know Him. I wanted to read His word each day and slow down to focus on Him. This morning I felt guilty about not giving Him my full attention because I was cooking as I read. I read this verse about 20 minutes later and it was as if God was saying to me “Tina, I see you. I know that you are trying and I understand. Today even though you weren’t “still” you were “still in my will”. See Tina, right there in Proverbs 31:27. You were still in my will.” It was almost like I received a big hug! Now I know that He doesn’t want me cooking and saying I am being still with Him every morning but this morning I knew it was ok. This morning I was honoring Him by honoring my husband. God didn’t have to let me off the hook for not sitting still before Him but He loved me enough to show me this morning to comfort my anxious heart about it. Isn’t that amazing? Isn’t He Amazing! Just like the love of a Father!
So today was super busy but I managed to stay on course.
Here are my meals today: fruit smoothie, apple, salad with grilled tuna, few chunks of tuna (for snack), taco salad and 2nd helping of taco salad.
My exercise for today I squeezed in between haircut and dropping SAM off for National Honor Society practice and the actual ceremony. I did about 40 minutes of lifting weights.
Day 10
Today started out really kind of ruff. First off I didn’t want to get up. I got out of bed and turned the coffee pot on and went back to bed and started reading. Needless to say it wasn’t long before I fell back asleep. Lucky for me I have 3 alarms set on my ipod to help me stay on task in the morning. One goes off for me to get up. One goes off when it is time for me to get SAM up and then the last one goes off for me to get Jes up. This way I don’t get lost in to whatever I am reading or my bible study or web surfing. This morning I waited to alarm #3 went off to get up. This made my morning routine nonexistent and the only thing that happens like normal is I manage to drink my 2 cups of coffee.
Next I just could not make myself want eggs today. Not any way you can make them. . . it just was not happening. So I decide today I would use my yogurt and fruit to make me a protein shake. I have not had one since starting this diet but feel like it is legit to this phase. It is low fat, protein and sugar free. I even decided to add a little unsweetened coco powder to it. I must say it was heaven in a cup!!! I think it will be breakfast for another day or two. At least to the urge to eat eggs comes back.
The bad thing about not eating food in the morning is by lunch time I got hungry. Really hungry. So tomorrow if I make a shake I will have to have my veggies and dip ready for when I want something to tide me over till lunch. Luckily, the cafeteria at work had green beans for lunch.
Tonight we had a fun event at church for our children’s choir. The children invited their grandparents to church and did fun songs and activities with them and then they had refreshments. There was this long table with all kinds of the worst kinds of food. You know the very yummy kind. There was pizza, homemade cookies, crackers, chips, taco soup, cherry pie, Rice Krispy treats and the list and the table went on and on. Kevin and I decided we would pull kitchen duty and pour drinks so that we would not have to go out there with the food. I did tell Kevin at the end to go get us some veggies and I couple pieces of fruit. (I know it was after 2 pm but at least it wasn’t chocolate chips cookies. I mean it is fruit. Once won’t kill me.) He comes back with a bowl full of veggies and 1 piece of pineapple. I said Kevin you went and got the 1 piece of fruit up there we can’t eat. So he tossed it. Oh well, that just means we didn’t cheat – even a little! I am much happier now though that I didn’t give in than I would have been eating a cookie.
I keep telling myself I am going to get there. One day I will be able to go into special nights like this and enjoy it. This is temporary but for me necessary to try and reset my boundaries with food. I do have control of this. I do get a choice. Sometimes I will just have to make the hard choices. What else in our lives do we have “control over” that it is not sometimes necessary to have to make a hard choice? Nothing. . .being in control means being the one who makes the calls – hard ones and easy one.
Today’s meals: yogurt/protein/fruit smoothie, orange, green beans, chicken & veggie soup, grilled tuna steak, steamed veggies, carrots, cucumbers & celery, left over tuna that SAM didn’t finish, yogurt.
Today’s exercise: I went for a 35 minute walk. With the program tonight I did not have time to go to the gym and I didn’t have time to get cleaned up after a run before church. So I compromised and decided not to skip exercise just because it wasn’t what I wanted to do.
Next I just could not make myself want eggs today. Not any way you can make them. . . it just was not happening. So I decide today I would use my yogurt and fruit to make me a protein shake. I have not had one since starting this diet but feel like it is legit to this phase. It is low fat, protein and sugar free. I even decided to add a little unsweetened coco powder to it. I must say it was heaven in a cup!!! I think it will be breakfast for another day or two. At least to the urge to eat eggs comes back.
The bad thing about not eating food in the morning is by lunch time I got hungry. Really hungry. So tomorrow if I make a shake I will have to have my veggies and dip ready for when I want something to tide me over till lunch. Luckily, the cafeteria at work had green beans for lunch.
Tonight we had a fun event at church for our children’s choir. The children invited their grandparents to church and did fun songs and activities with them and then they had refreshments. There was this long table with all kinds of the worst kinds of food. You know the very yummy kind. There was pizza, homemade cookies, crackers, chips, taco soup, cherry pie, Rice Krispy treats and the list and the table went on and on. Kevin and I decided we would pull kitchen duty and pour drinks so that we would not have to go out there with the food. I did tell Kevin at the end to go get us some veggies and I couple pieces of fruit. (I know it was after 2 pm but at least it wasn’t chocolate chips cookies. I mean it is fruit. Once won’t kill me.) He comes back with a bowl full of veggies and 1 piece of pineapple. I said Kevin you went and got the 1 piece of fruit up there we can’t eat. So he tossed it. Oh well, that just means we didn’t cheat – even a little! I am much happier now though that I didn’t give in than I would have been eating a cookie.
I keep telling myself I am going to get there. One day I will be able to go into special nights like this and enjoy it. This is temporary but for me necessary to try and reset my boundaries with food. I do have control of this. I do get a choice. Sometimes I will just have to make the hard choices. What else in our lives do we have “control over” that it is not sometimes necessary to have to make a hard choice? Nothing. . .being in control means being the one who makes the calls – hard ones and easy one.
Today’s meals: yogurt/protein/fruit smoothie, orange, green beans, chicken & veggie soup, grilled tuna steak, steamed veggies, carrots, cucumbers & celery, left over tuna that SAM didn’t finish, yogurt.
Today’s exercise: I went for a 35 minute walk. With the program tonight I did not have time to go to the gym and I didn’t have time to get cleaned up after a run before church. So I compromised and decided not to skip exercise just because it wasn’t what I wanted to do.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Day 9
Today has been another super busy Tuesday. Today after work not only did I need to go for a quick run but I also had to take SAM to get her prom dress fitted before I took her to dance and then head to bible study. After bible study I have a simulcast meeting and I got home after 9. Good thing I made soup in the crock pot today because there was no time for dinner. I actually fixed me a to-go bowl before heading out the door and I ate it in the church parking lot before bible study. Tuesday is always a tuff day for me. Tonight I find myself really wanting to eat something bad for me. I got it so bad that when SAM told me she wanted a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch I told her she had to make it herself. She was shocked and I told her “I am sorry I am having a moment and I just cannot fix your sandwich without sticking my whole head in the peanut butter jar.” She said “you are having a food moment.” Yep! That is what I am having. So I made my rounds in the kitchen very quickly and got out. Basically I got the coffee made and the soup in the fridge and then got out.
I am afraid this too is going to have to be short and sweet because going to be is best thing for this tired worn out mommy to do.
I will say that I have played around with my blog page some today and figured how to add pages. I have now added a recipe page and I will try and put up some of my favorite recipes I find. This blogging thing has been fun playing around with and it has been a great accountability tool. Just today I went to a “birthday party” at work for a coworker. There was a triple brownie birthday cake. I had really considered eating just 2 bites of it. (yes it would be cheating during the 1st 17 days) I have read in a couple different places that the 1st 2 bites of anything is the most enjoyable. Anything after that is not as tasty and I was fine with eating 2 bites. No guilt in it for me. However, 1st I thought about how upset my hubby would be if I cheated. Then I thought what if one of those folks in the room has been reading my blog. . . sure enough a few minutes later another person came in and said “is that on your diet?” Lucky for me I got to say “I am not eating cake – I have a bag of apple slices”. Yeah me. . . so this blog helped me to make a better decision because I knew I couldn’t lie here! So thank you guys for reading this.
Today’s meals: eggs, oranges, salad with turkey chunks, apples, (no cake), yogurt, chicken and veggie soup, yogurt
Exercise today: walking 10 minutes and running 24.
I am afraid this too is going to have to be short and sweet because going to be is best thing for this tired worn out mommy to do.
I will say that I have played around with my blog page some today and figured how to add pages. I have now added a recipe page and I will try and put up some of my favorite recipes I find. This blogging thing has been fun playing around with and it has been a great accountability tool. Just today I went to a “birthday party” at work for a coworker. There was a triple brownie birthday cake. I had really considered eating just 2 bites of it. (yes it would be cheating during the 1st 17 days) I have read in a couple different places that the 1st 2 bites of anything is the most enjoyable. Anything after that is not as tasty and I was fine with eating 2 bites. No guilt in it for me. However, 1st I thought about how upset my hubby would be if I cheated. Then I thought what if one of those folks in the room has been reading my blog. . . sure enough a few minutes later another person came in and said “is that on your diet?” Lucky for me I got to say “I am not eating cake – I have a bag of apple slices”. Yeah me. . . so this blog helped me to make a better decision because I knew I couldn’t lie here! So thank you guys for reading this.
Today’s meals: eggs, oranges, salad with turkey chunks, apples, (no cake), yogurt, chicken and veggie soup, yogurt
Exercise today: walking 10 minutes and running 24.
Day 9
Here is the link where I found yesterday's Lettuce Wrap recipe. It is listed as the P.F.Chang wanna be)
http://thedoctorstv.com/TheDoctorsBoard1/posts/10116-CYCLE-1-RECIPE-LINKS
http://thedoctorstv.com/TheDoctorsBoard1/posts/10116-CYCLE-1-RECIPE-LINKS
Monday, March 21, 2011
Day 8
What an exciting day. It has been a week since I have started this journey and today began with a trip to the scales. . . Oh yeah – you know you would have done the same thing too. I am pleased and proud to say over the course of this past week I have lost 6 pounds. I am also proud to say that I have lost it the healthy way. I have not given up eating. I have not exercised myself to death. I have not given up on food. Everything that I have eaten for the last week has been lean, green or all around good for you. I have not eaten out once this week. I have not splurged on one dessert or sweet thing that nature didn’t make. I have eaten 3 meals a day and munched on snacks like yogurt, berries, apples, celery, carrots, cucumbers and dip (made with greek yogurt of course). Guess what – I feel great. I had one moody day and one headache all week. I have not been without energy and honestly I feel better! I am very excited about this. I guess because I know that I am eating the things that are best for my body.
Tonight for dinner I tried another new recipe. This is something that I would have never thought I would ever cook myself. I can say I have had this dish before but I can promise it was nowhere near as healthy as what I cooked tonight. I made lettuce wraps. I used ground turkey for the meat and made the homemade sauce to put on them. They were delicious. I got the recipe off of THE DOCTORS blog website for the 17 day diet. There is a recipe in the back of the book but I didn’t like the looks of it as well as I did this one. It was truly delicious. My husband liked it a lot too. We both like it so well that there is none left for lunch tomorrow. Good thing I kids had already made dinner for themselves and ate. (They wanted spaghetti and toast – and I must say the spaghetti didn’t tempt me but that buttery cheese toast setting on the table was really hard to look.) After we finished dinner I couldn’t help but think – now I would have never cooked this dinner had we not been doing this diet. It really was not hard. It was worth all the effort.
So looking back at the week as a whole I must say the hardest part for me is getting in the mindset that I must be prepared. I cannot just get up every morning and think “oh don’t worry about what you will eat – you will be fine”. The reason for this is because convenient foods are not usually good for you foods. They are not foods that your body needs and they won’t do much to satisfy hunger. So each day I plan what I will eat. It really isn’t hard though because you need to eat 2 yogurts each day – well there is 2 snacks. You get 2 fruits a day – but they must be eaten by 2pm. You get eggs for breakfast and then all the good for you veggies and lean meat you can eat without overeating the rest of the day. So really you are just trying to figure out “what’s for dinner?” and you are going to have to do that anyway.
What has been the easiest part? Surprisingly, the easy part has been that I have made up my mind! I don’t know where I will be in 6 months but I have set my goal at 17 days and I am almost half way there. I am loving the feeling of not being controlled by what is in my cabinets. I don’t have to say no to it but I am choosing to say no for now and in doing so I have found that I really don’t want those kinds of foods anyway. It is almost like the feeling I get when I go running. The first mile is always the hardest but once I get going I really just have to run until I tell myself I can stop. I may go slowly for a while and I may turn up the volume on my ipod but I don’t quit till I am done. That is the focus I have taken with this diet. I know what I am doing is good for me. I feel like it is right. Now I am just going to put one foot in front of the other till I reach the goal I have set for me. Sounds like a winner’s plan to me.
Foods for today: scramble egg, orange, grilled chicken, roasted cauliflower and carrots, strawberries, greek yogurt, lettuce wraps, yogurt
I did not officially work out today. However, I came home at 5:30 and did not stop and sit down (other than dinner) till 9:00.
Tonight for dinner I tried another new recipe. This is something that I would have never thought I would ever cook myself. I can say I have had this dish before but I can promise it was nowhere near as healthy as what I cooked tonight. I made lettuce wraps. I used ground turkey for the meat and made the homemade sauce to put on them. They were delicious. I got the recipe off of THE DOCTORS blog website for the 17 day diet. There is a recipe in the back of the book but I didn’t like the looks of it as well as I did this one. It was truly delicious. My husband liked it a lot too. We both like it so well that there is none left for lunch tomorrow. Good thing I kids had already made dinner for themselves and ate. (They wanted spaghetti and toast – and I must say the spaghetti didn’t tempt me but that buttery cheese toast setting on the table was really hard to look.) After we finished dinner I couldn’t help but think – now I would have never cooked this dinner had we not been doing this diet. It really was not hard. It was worth all the effort.
So looking back at the week as a whole I must say the hardest part for me is getting in the mindset that I must be prepared. I cannot just get up every morning and think “oh don’t worry about what you will eat – you will be fine”. The reason for this is because convenient foods are not usually good for you foods. They are not foods that your body needs and they won’t do much to satisfy hunger. So each day I plan what I will eat. It really isn’t hard though because you need to eat 2 yogurts each day – well there is 2 snacks. You get 2 fruits a day – but they must be eaten by 2pm. You get eggs for breakfast and then all the good for you veggies and lean meat you can eat without overeating the rest of the day. So really you are just trying to figure out “what’s for dinner?” and you are going to have to do that anyway.
What has been the easiest part? Surprisingly, the easy part has been that I have made up my mind! I don’t know where I will be in 6 months but I have set my goal at 17 days and I am almost half way there. I am loving the feeling of not being controlled by what is in my cabinets. I don’t have to say no to it but I am choosing to say no for now and in doing so I have found that I really don’t want those kinds of foods anyway. It is almost like the feeling I get when I go running. The first mile is always the hardest but once I get going I really just have to run until I tell myself I can stop. I may go slowly for a while and I may turn up the volume on my ipod but I don’t quit till I am done. That is the focus I have taken with this diet. I know what I am doing is good for me. I feel like it is right. Now I am just going to put one foot in front of the other till I reach the goal I have set for me. Sounds like a winner’s plan to me.
Foods for today: scramble egg, orange, grilled chicken, roasted cauliflower and carrots, strawberries, greek yogurt, lettuce wraps, yogurt
I did not officially work out today. However, I came home at 5:30 and did not stop and sit down (other than dinner) till 9:00.
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Day 7 - One week complete
Today has been a mixed emotions kind of day. I always love Sunday. Sunday for me means going to church with my family. It means worshiping with some of my favorite people in the world. Today I had to work in the library so I didn’t get to spend as much time visiting with folks between 1st service and Sunday school. I did get a chance while in the library to eat my apples and yogurt. Then after church I took my kids to get some breakfast from Biscuitville and then came home. No Biscuitville for me. . . and I was fine with that. My sweet children even eat all their breakfast and cleaned up any proof of biscuits before I came back into the kitchen.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Day 7 - One week complete
Today has been a mixed emotions kind of day. I always love Sunday. Sunday for me means going to church with my family. It means worshiping with some of my favorite people in the world. Today I had to work in the library so I didn’t get to spend as much time visiting with folks between 1st service and Sunday school. I did get a chance while in the library to eat my apples and yogurt. Then after church I took my kids to get some breakfast from Biscuitville and then came home. No Biscuitville for me. . . and I was fine with that. My sweet children even eat all their breakfast and cleaned up any proof of biscuits before I came back into the kitchen.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Day 7 - One week complete
Today has been a mixed emotions kind of day. I always love Sunday. Sunday for me means going to church with my family. It means worshiping with some of my favorite people in the world. Today I had to work in the library so I didn’t get to spend as much time visiting with folks between 1st service and Sunday school. I did get a chance while in the library to eat my apples and yogurt. Then after church I took my kids to get some breakfast from Biscuitville and then came home. No Biscuitville for me. . . and I was fine with that. My sweet children even eat all their breakfast and cleaned up any proof of biscuits before I came back into the kitchen.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Then after I got home I fixed my breakfast and tried to get some things fixed on the computer. Needless to say all that did was make me frustrated which made me want to eat. Today – this is where the difficult part of my day began. I couldn’t get what I wanted to done because I couldn’t get it to work. I felt the need to eat and eat something salty and crunchy. However, I would not let myself give in to that. I got to say this is the first time in a week that my flesh reared its ugly head. I became one grumpy mama. I finally got up and fixed me a salad with salmon pieces on it and after that I decided there was only one cure for my grumpiness and that was a Sunday afternoon nap. However, I had already wasted a lot of my afternoon so I knew it wasn’t going to be a long one. When it was time to get up so I could head back to church I was still grumpy and still tired. I just decided to grab a bottle of water and head on to church.
After getting outside and driving I did get to feeling better. It kind of reminded me of how some people sooth a crying baby by taking them on a car ride. The more I drove the better I felt. I said to myself I am going to have to remember this the next time I need a pick me up. I will just have to get into the car and turn on some Third Day and open the sunroof and drive. Mental note to self – driving soothes the angry mama as much as the crying baby.
After choir my husband and I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things we need to make all our meals for the week. My husband has complained about how much food I have bought this week and I couldn’t help but ask him how much money did he spend eating out? None! Enough said!
Well even through the ups and downs of my moods today it has been a successful day. I did not give in to my craving flesh. I am proud of that. I pushed through it and stuck to my plan.
Today my menu has been: apples, Greek yogurt, eggs, turkey breast, tomatoes, salad, salmon chunks, oranges, and fajita chicken tossed salad (no chips just salad) w/ salsa and fat free sour cream, Greek yogurt.
I am sad to say other than running around my kitchen preparing dinner and lunches for tomorrow I didn’t have any exercise today. However, it is the day of rest.
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Day 6
Today has been a beautiful day here in NC. The sun has been out all day and the temps have been in the 70's. It’s hard not to love a day like today. For me it began about 8:00. That is about as late as I could sleep. Once my eyes were open my mind began racing about things that needed to get done.
However, the first thing I did was go make some coffee! Then I made a to do list. Next I fixed a cup of coffee and pulled out all my bible study stuff, Ipad, note book and such to have my quiet time. I don't know where you are from - but I have never been a part of a church that celebrated Lent. However, over the last several years a friend of mine and me began this "discipline". Sorry - please do not let me offend anyone with my knowledge of Lent. However, over the last several years we have used this time to give up something and try to prepare our hearts for the upcoming Easter Holiday. Well in the past I have given up sodas, coffee, processed sweets, time, and last year I even gave up TV. This year as I prayed and prayed about what to give up and honestly the Lord kept nudging me that it wasn’t about sacrifice but obedience and that I really needed to sit at His feet and listen to Him. This past year has been full of challenges for me. Several which can be attributed to my weight gain. So I continue to pray saying "really Lord - you don’t want me to give up anything?' and He kept nudging me to "choose Him first & really be still and know He is God over my life and over my circumstance." So this year for Lent I haven’t given up anything but what I have chosen to do is to actively read His word and take notes and journal back to Him each day. It has really been amazing too. Right now I am reading Nehemiah and I have asked God to help rebuild the walls of my life as He did in Nehemiah. So this morning before all the rest of the family (other than my DH who had gone to work) got up I spent my morning reading, writing and talking to God. I found the most amazing verse ~ Neh. 8:10 - "Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before the Lord. Don't be dejected and sad, for the Joy of the Lord is your strength."
This is what I put in my journal - "Thank you Lord that in your word sits this verse. Thank you Father that even though it’s not in your will for me to be a glutton and eat sweets and rich foods all the time - there is a time and place for them. I don't have to feel guilty when those special moments in life arrive . . . like holidays, weddings or birthdays of those I love and are very special to me. I don't have to be tied completely to these healthy ways and never enjoy those rich foods. Thank you Lord. Now this is what freedom feels like. Not bond to those foods ~ not bothered by them either but not barred completely from ever enjoying them."
I am sure this is wonderful news to someone other than me. I just wanted to share it with anyone who is reading. God loves you. He wants you to be healthy but He is not a tyrant that doesn't want the good things, rich things, sweet things in your life. He just wants you not to rely on them instead of Him.
So after my quiet time I went for a run and then continued to work on the rest of my to do list. The rest of my day was just your regular old every day BEAUTIFUL Saturday. There is nothing else worth noting. So with that said here is what I ate today:
Eggs with turkey breast, apples, strawberries, baked salmon with roasted broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, veggies and dip, & yogurt.
Today exercise - I went running for 28 minutes, walking for 10 and went to the gym to lift weights 45 minutes. I usually exercise this much in one day but I wanted to catch up on the run I missed on Wed. Not to mention I LOVE my new Nikes.
However, the first thing I did was go make some coffee! Then I made a to do list. Next I fixed a cup of coffee and pulled out all my bible study stuff, Ipad, note book and such to have my quiet time. I don't know where you are from - but I have never been a part of a church that celebrated Lent. However, over the last several years a friend of mine and me began this "discipline". Sorry - please do not let me offend anyone with my knowledge of Lent. However, over the last several years we have used this time to give up something and try to prepare our hearts for the upcoming Easter Holiday. Well in the past I have given up sodas, coffee, processed sweets, time, and last year I even gave up TV. This year as I prayed and prayed about what to give up and honestly the Lord kept nudging me that it wasn’t about sacrifice but obedience and that I really needed to sit at His feet and listen to Him. This past year has been full of challenges for me. Several which can be attributed to my weight gain. So I continue to pray saying "really Lord - you don’t want me to give up anything?' and He kept nudging me to "choose Him first & really be still and know He is God over my life and over my circumstance." So this year for Lent I haven’t given up anything but what I have chosen to do is to actively read His word and take notes and journal back to Him each day. It has really been amazing too. Right now I am reading Nehemiah and I have asked God to help rebuild the walls of my life as He did in Nehemiah. So this morning before all the rest of the family (other than my DH who had gone to work) got up I spent my morning reading, writing and talking to God. I found the most amazing verse ~ Neh. 8:10 - "Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before the Lord. Don't be dejected and sad, for the Joy of the Lord is your strength."
This is what I put in my journal - "Thank you Lord that in your word sits this verse. Thank you Father that even though it’s not in your will for me to be a glutton and eat sweets and rich foods all the time - there is a time and place for them. I don't have to feel guilty when those special moments in life arrive . . . like holidays, weddings or birthdays of those I love and are very special to me. I don't have to be tied completely to these healthy ways and never enjoy those rich foods. Thank you Lord. Now this is what freedom feels like. Not bond to those foods ~ not bothered by them either but not barred completely from ever enjoying them."
I am sure this is wonderful news to someone other than me. I just wanted to share it with anyone who is reading. God loves you. He wants you to be healthy but He is not a tyrant that doesn't want the good things, rich things, sweet things in your life. He just wants you not to rely on them instead of Him.
So after my quiet time I went for a run and then continued to work on the rest of my to do list. The rest of my day was just your regular old every day BEAUTIFUL Saturday. There is nothing else worth noting. So with that said here is what I ate today:
Eggs with turkey breast, apples, strawberries, baked salmon with roasted broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots, veggies and dip, & yogurt.
Today exercise - I went running for 28 minutes, walking for 10 and went to the gym to lift weights 45 minutes. I usually exercise this much in one day but I wanted to catch up on the run I missed on Wed. Not to mention I LOVE my new Nikes.
Friday, March 18, 2011
Day 5
Day 5
Today I learned something about myself. Today I realized that on any given day I can over eat on chips, chocolate, gold fish, chips and salsa; I can always make room for cake, pies, cobblers or ice cream. The one thing I cannot do is over eat broccoli! No way – no how – it is not possible for me to continue past full if I am eating broccoli. Which made me think – I don’t really remember a time that I have ever over eaten something healthy. You can mindless munch for just a little while on veggies – but when your body says stop there isn’t much more discussion about that. I came to this realization today during my lunch.
I had fixed me a tossed salad with chopped up turkey breast on it and salsa dressing. I had also warmed up the rest of the broccoli and cauliflower from dinner last night to eat after my salad. Well after my salad I was full but I had already heated up the veggies and I figured that if I ate it would keep me full longer . . . well 2 bites into it I could not keep going. Literally I spit the last bite back in the bowl and said I am done. Now if I another cookie – I would have managed just fine. Like I said there is always room for dessert. This to me is just one more reason why I know this way of eating is right for me.
I have done Weight Watchers – successful a couple of times – but after a while we learn to cope. We learn to manipulate our points and still not eat healthy. I have been exercising for years now. I run and lift weights. I truly would consider myself a very strong person (not a fast person mind you) but that has not caused this weight to come off and stay off either. Why ~ because I let mindless eating control my behavior. I have sat and munched past full over and over again and it never has bothered me with the salty or sugar foods. However, I can't think of any fruit, veggie or lean meat that would make me say “I can’t believe I ate the whole thing.” Seriously, has anyone reading this ever said “I can’t believe I sat here and ate that whole bag of carrots; I can’t believe I ate that whole bag of apples; I can’t believe I just ate that whole baked chicken.” No, I don’t think so.
The thing that I have learned from this realization is that when I get to add those kinds of things back into my diet that I need to remember they are for the taste and enjoyment but they are not foods that should count toward my nutrition for the day. So when I want gold fish – and I WILL eat gold fish again one day – just not right now – that I need to get me a small bowl and put some in and enjoy them. However, they don’t need to be the side dish to my sandwich at lunch because they truly don’t have any nutritional value. They don’t give my body the vitamins or nutrients that it needs. I need to remember that I eat those kinds of things in life for the enjoyment of it and they need to be in moderation. When it comes to what my body was designed to run on – that would be the good fuels of life that were made nature’s way.
The same can also be said of eating to comfort. After reading all the above I can say that I have never had a bad day and went to the fridge for carrots. I have never said, “I deserve this apples” or “This turkey breast is going to make me feel better about my problems.” Why - because that is not the purpose of food. It would be absurd to think that veggie sticks or Greek yogurt or asparagus would calm you and make everything feel better. Well shouldn’t the same be said about a bag of chocolate covered almonds (yum)? Why then do we allow these kinds of foods to try and fill up our bodies when really the only thing they are feeling up is our jeans? They may feel good for a moment but they really are lying to us because they are not really serving the true purpose of food. WHOOH! Talk about Revelation! So I challenge anyone reading this today – when you are setting there eating your dinner or late night snack considers these questions.
Am I really hungry?
Am I really still hungry?
If this was another ½ cup of broccoli and cauliflower would I still try and eat it?
Am I eating this to make me feel better?
What benefit is my body really going to give me?
Or as my friend Stacey say "How will i feel about this tomorrow?"
Now please don’t get me wrong. I am not trying to sound judgemental here. I don’t mean for you to think you should take the path that I have chosen to take. I am just sharing with you my thoughts about what I have realized about myself today. Maybe you can see a little bit of your own struggles through my eyes today and isn't the easiest way to learn any lesson through someone else’s eyes.
Off my soap box now. . .
Now that you know what I have eaten for lunch – here is my meals for today:
So Far - Eggs, strawberries, salad w/ turkey breast and salsa, about 1 piece of broccoli and cauliflower, an orange, yogurt
Evening planned food - veggies and dip, grilled chicken kabobs with onions & peppers, yogurt
Planned exercise – Running in my new fly Nike running shoes picture above! Whoop Whoop!
(another addiction my husband would say I have)
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Day 4
Well here I am on day 4. I have got to say that things are going really good. Today was not as busy because until ball season starts we don’t usually have any after school activities on Thursday night. Today has been a good day for both my husband and me. Neither of us have had a headache or been overly tired. We both are sticking to our meal plans. Kevin even cooked dinner on the grill tonight while I went to the gym to get my work out done. He had gone after work so he had already gotten his in. So today my meals were – eggs w/ tomato of course, small fruit bowl with strawberries, blueberries, and a half a peach and a few grapes, grilled chicken, tossed salad with salsa and just a little bit of fat free sour cream, yogurt, orange, veggies w/ Greek yogurt dip, grilled turkey burgers w/ bruschetta tomatoes on top, steamed broccoli and cauliflower, and to end the day yogurt. I can honestly say that I don’t get hungry during the day or evenings as much as long as I eat my 3 meals and morning/afternoon snack and finish the day with my last yogurt. I still would love to have more coffee in the morning but I will survive that. The sodas have not been that bad for me yet. Surprisingly the lack of sweets has not really phased me much at all. The only thing that has tempted me in the least was this new oatmeal bar that I had just found and fell in love with. I still had a few left and I decided today was a great day to give those way to friends for St. Patty’s Day! That way they are not sitting on my counter whispering to me. They are healthy but just don’t fit in to my plan right now. I can get me some more in a little while. I have read lately in the book Made to Crave that you crave what you eat. Well I did not really believe the author when I read it because I really am addicted to sugar – but after 4 days I really do crave the foods that I have been eating – all except the carrot sticks that I put in my veggie stick snack baggie – I don’t really care for them but I put 4 skinny ones in there so the celery and cucumbers don’t get lonely being all green by themselves. However, I do believe I have a new addiction and that is shopping for fresh foods. Oh my, you can’t get anything else in my fridge right now. I have enough fruits and veggies to cater a wedding. My husband just rolled his eyes when I came in today from Food Lion after my daughter asked me to stop and get some pickles and hamburger buns and of course I came in with more yogurt and 3 packs of chicken breast! It was on sale! Half price boneless, skinless chicken breast! Yes – I bought it and if you send me back into Food Lion again before next Wed. I will pick up some more! I know it is crazy but admitting it is the first step right. So for now I am going to stay clear of Food Lion and try to eat up the foods I have in my fridge. (Lol)
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Day 3
Well here I am again sitting down with my family half watching tv and half thinking about what I want to write. Today has been even busier then yesterday. Today has been a little more difficult because of it too. I decided to take the afternoon off because Sarah had an early release day. I decided today would be a good day to take her prom dress shopping. So when I left work I came home I packed me a snack bag because I knew I would be away for a while. My plan was to go by Subway and get a salad to eat for lunch but when I stopped by CVS to pick up some meds I got behind and Subway was packed so I decided to wait. I picked up Sarah and then we were off to shop. I am happy to say that we found the perfect dress, shoes, and jewelery. So after we finished I was starving. I grabbed my apple slices and 1 diet soda for the day from my snack bag and headed to Barnes and Nobel to pick up the new released book on the 17 Day Diet. When I got there it was $25 and I had to pass. Then I was to Costco. There I got lots of fresh fruit and veggies and guess what else - the book for $14.45! I was so excited and glad I didn't buy it at B & N. By now I was really hungry and my head was starting to hurt. I reached into my handy dandy snack bag and got out my veggies and dip and green tea. So as my daughter drove home I snacked. Then when we got home I started dinner. After dinner - which I must save was the best meal I have eaten in a long time it was off to church to teach my Ga's. Then from there back to here. Not really the kind of half day off must long for but as usual it was very productive. Now I feel like I have been in a whirl wind but it isn't over. There is still tomorrow to prepare for and clothes in the dryer from my first trip out today. Such is the life of a mother and wife. I guess I say all this to prove what I said last night - planning is key. That snack bag saved me today from running to the wrong kinds of food or excuses to just eat whatever is handy. I am so thankful for this little trick that my friend Stacey showed me. So today didn't go as planned but I didn't let it ruin my plan to stick to my diet! So today my meals were - eggs w/ tomatoes, yogurt, apples slices, veggies with Greek yogurt dip, taco salad (made with ground chicken breast, taco season, lettuce, tomato, salsa, grilled onions and peppers and a little fat free sour cream - yum), & yogurt. I did not get a run in today but I can make up for that. The great thing is through it all I did not give up or give in. This morning my prayer was " The God in Heaven would help me His servant succeed and that He would rebuild the wall of my life." Neh 3:20. So through out today He has been faithgul in helping me His servant succed! To him be the praise! Thanks you Father! More to come. . .Tomorrow!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Day 2
Well I have managed to make it through days one and two and still remained very excited about this diet. I have been wanting to blog all day but Tuesday is always busy for my family. I was encouraged to blog about my day 2 when I saw I had two "followers". I figured if they were interested enough to check in on me then I should not skip this today. Well yesterday ended very well with me doing and eating what I was suppose to. I did have coffee in the morning but I had said I was going to because kicking sugar and caffeine seemed to be too much of a battle especially on "spring forward" week. I also said I could have 1 diet soda a day! This is a huge difference from the 5-7 I am use to drinking. (I know that is bad but it is true.) Yesterday I ate eggs and tomato omelet, yogurt, grapes, tuna on top of tossed salad, strawberries with grapes, chopped veggies with Greek yogurt dip (mixed a little hidden valley ranch w/ plain Greek yogurt), grilled tuna, grilled asparagus, roasted broccoli & cauliflower w/ Italian season, & a Greek yogurt. (in that order from breakfast through final snack). I also went for a ten min walk and 35 min run. I had a good day. However my husband ended up with a killer headache and had to go to bed. I was very worried he was going to give up but he got up this morning and said " what are we eating today?" Yeah!
So today I had another great day. I forgot to cook my eggs this morning and was about to starve for lunch. How could I forget a meal? I bet that doesn't happen again. Today I ate yogurt with blueberries, chopped veggies w/ yogurt dip, tossed salad w/ chopped turkey breast, apple, chopped turkey breast slice, grilled chicken breast, grilled asparagus, roasted broccoli, carrots, & cauliflower w/ Italian seasoning, Greek yogurt and 3 pickles. I went to the gym and did weights for 45 min. Today I really want another cup of coffee but I had to tell myself no. I would have loved another soda too. Funny that today the drinks got to me more then the food. I held strong though. I am happy to say my hubby is still staying on track today and has been headache free. That is great because I really want us to do this together. I have already planned most of my food for tomorrow. I really feel like planning is key with this diet. You must be ready or else the convenient foods will scream at you. I also believe you need to go to bed early. This is because I want to munch more the later it gets. Now with that said I am going to wrap this up and head that way . . . Because its late and I hear my hubby in the kitchen rumbling around. Lol!
So today I had another great day. I forgot to cook my eggs this morning and was about to starve for lunch. How could I forget a meal? I bet that doesn't happen again. Today I ate yogurt with blueberries, chopped veggies w/ yogurt dip, tossed salad w/ chopped turkey breast, apple, chopped turkey breast slice, grilled chicken breast, grilled asparagus, roasted broccoli, carrots, & cauliflower w/ Italian seasoning, Greek yogurt and 3 pickles. I went to the gym and did weights for 45 min. Today I really want another cup of coffee but I had to tell myself no. I would have loved another soda too. Funny that today the drinks got to me more then the food. I held strong though. I am happy to say my hubby is still staying on track today and has been headache free. That is great because I really want us to do this together. I have already planned most of my food for tomorrow. I really feel like planning is key with this diet. You must be ready or else the convenient foods will scream at you. I also believe you need to go to bed early. This is because I want to munch more the later it gets. Now with that said I am going to wrap this up and head that way . . . Because its late and I hear my hubby in the kitchen rumbling around. Lol!
Monday, March 14, 2011
Day 1
My husband and I are beginning the 17 Day Diet plan today. In case you have not heard about this diet you can find more information from the book The 17 Day Diet: A Doctor's Plan Designed for Rapid Results by Mike Moreno. A friend of mine has been doing this diet for a while now and has been very pleased with her success as well as how much better she feels. She also loves the fact of how balanced the diet really is. The diet is based on eating healthy food in portions that your body is created to use. After reading over the book and looking up several sites on the web my husband and I decided that we were going to give it a try. I cringe as I type the last statement because when it comes to something with my health I do not like to say I am going to “try” anything. Several years ago God replaced my “try” attitude with a “training” attitude when He led me to train to run. However, I say “try” here because that is how I presented it my husband who has been throwing around the idea of cutting out carbs for a couple of months now. However, I kept saying that is too extreme . . . carbs are not all bad . . . you do need some carbs. So after reading this book I figured this was the happy medium that my husband and I needed to move ahead. This way we cut out a lot of carbs but not completely. Also, the first phase is only for 17 days. I keep telling myself that is two weeks and three days. I can do this for two weeks and three days. I can even get me a calendar and mark them off as I go. So here we go. We went to the grocery store last night and purchased all the foods that we liked on the list of phase one foods. I packed my husband’s lunch and sent him off to work and I fixed my breakfast and headed off to work. Then when I got to work my sweet friend who shared her book with me had fixed me a goodie bag of her “favorite things” on this diet along with a note! It was quite a treat and it blessed my heart. The very first verse on it was one of my verses that I have been committing to memory ~ Deut. 2:3 which says “You have circled this mountain long enough. Now go North.” You know only God can do that. Not only give you a short, little, out of the way verse to commit to memory a month ago, but then have a friend send you encouragement that includes the same verse God had given you earlier. Isn’t He simply amazing like that!
Now my husband has texted me and checked in with me several times today. He has told me he felt like a rabbit and I wanted so bad to say . . . don’t say that. . . be positive. However, instead I just decided to be positive myself and try to encourage him along. God has also taught me a long time ago you cannot influence change in anyone by pulling them your way kicking and screaming. So I will just keep encouraging him and looking for ways to make the next 17 days full of good foods that are good for us.
Of course when you begin anything you will also run up against opposition. So far today mine has come in the form of a gift. Thanks be to all those who worked so hard in doing this special thing and on any other given Monday I would have been thrilled. However, today our staff is being served by a group of parents to show their appreciation for us. Lunch: Baked Spaghetti, Salad, Fruit, and all kinds of homemade cakes and cobblers. I thought to myself . . . spaghetti. . .desserts . . . oh my! Needless to say I went in there smiling big and fixed me a to-go bowl of salad and fruit (grapes and berries) and said “Thank You So Much!” To myself I was thinking “don’t look at the cake, don’t even look at it. . . 17 days, 2 weeks and 3 days!” However, I am now I’m back at my desk and I am fine! I am going to take my salad and fruit home with me and eat my tuna on top of the salad.
I am excited about this. I have prayed about it and God has given me a peaceful and joyful spirit about it. I am excited to see what the next 17 days has in store.
I look forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. However, I am not an expert. I can only share my journey and my outcome. I make no promises and I do not make any claims. I am just a friendly voice trying hard to fight a struggle that some many others in this world seems to have. However, I do want to do it with balance and dignity and respect for this body that the Lord has given me for I know that “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” Psalms 139:14
Now my husband has texted me and checked in with me several times today. He has told me he felt like a rabbit and I wanted so bad to say . . . don’t say that. . . be positive. However, instead I just decided to be positive myself and try to encourage him along. God has also taught me a long time ago you cannot influence change in anyone by pulling them your way kicking and screaming. So I will just keep encouraging him and looking for ways to make the next 17 days full of good foods that are good for us.
Of course when you begin anything you will also run up against opposition. So far today mine has come in the form of a gift. Thanks be to all those who worked so hard in doing this special thing and on any other given Monday I would have been thrilled. However, today our staff is being served by a group of parents to show their appreciation for us. Lunch: Baked Spaghetti, Salad, Fruit, and all kinds of homemade cakes and cobblers. I thought to myself . . . spaghetti. . .desserts . . . oh my! Needless to say I went in there smiling big and fixed me a to-go bowl of salad and fruit (grapes and berries) and said “Thank You So Much!” To myself I was thinking “don’t look at the cake, don’t even look at it. . . 17 days, 2 weeks and 3 days!” However, I am now I’m back at my desk and I am fine! I am going to take my salad and fruit home with me and eat my tuna on top of the salad.
I am excited about this. I have prayed about it and God has given me a peaceful and joyful spirit about it. I am excited to see what the next 17 days has in store.
I look forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. However, I am not an expert. I can only share my journey and my outcome. I make no promises and I do not make any claims. I am just a friendly voice trying hard to fight a struggle that some many others in this world seems to have. However, I do want to do it with balance and dignity and respect for this body that the Lord has given me for I know that “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” Psalms 139:14
Day 1
My husband and I are beginning the 17 Day Diet plan today. In case you have not heard about this diet you can find more information from the book The 17 Day Diet: A Doctor's Plan Designed for Rapid Results by Mike Moreno. A friend of mine has been doing this diet for a while now and has been very pleased with her success as well as how much better she feels. She also loves the fact of how balanced the diet really is. The diet is based on eating healthy food in portions that your body is created to use. After reading over the book and looking up several sites on the web my husband and I decided that we were going to give it a try. I cringe as I type the last statement because when it comes to something with my health I do not like to say I am going to “try” anything. Several years ago God replaced my “try” attitude with a “training” attitude when He led me to train to run. However, I say “try” here because that is how I presented it my husband who has been throwing around the idea of cutting out carbs for a couple of months now. However, I kept saying that is too extreme . . . carbs are not all bad . . . you do need some carbs. So after reading this book I figured this was the happy medium that my husband and I needed to move ahead. This way we cut out a lot of carbs but not completely. Also, the first phase is only for 17 days. I keep telling myself that is two weeks and three days. I can do this for two weeks and three days. I can even get me a calendar and mark them off as I go. So here we go. We went to the grocery store last night and purchased all the foods that we liked on the list of phase one foods. I packed my husband’s lunch and sent him off to work and I fixed my breakfast and headed off to work. Then when I got to work my sweet friend who shared her book with me had fixed me a goodie bag of her “favorite things” on this diet along with a note! It was quite a treat and it blessed my heart. The very first verse on it was one of my verses that I have been committing to memory ~ Deut. 2:3 which says “You have circled this mountain long enough. Now go North.” You know only God can do that. Not only give you a short, little, out of the way verse to commit to memory a month ago, but then have a friend send you encouragement that includes the same verse God had given you earlier. Isn’t He simply amazing like that!
Now my husband has texted me and checked in with me several times today. He has told me he felt like a rabbit and I wanted so bad to say . . . don’t say that. . . be positive. However, instead I just decided to be positive myself and try to encourage him along. God has also taught me a long time ago you cannot influence change in anyone by pulling them your way kicking and screaming. So I will just keep encouraging him and looking for ways to make the next 17 days full of good foods that are good for us.
Of course when you begin anything you will also run up against opposition. So far today mine has come in the form of a gift. Thanks be to all those who worked so hard in doing this special thing and on any other given Monday I would have been thrilled. However, today our staff is being served by a group of parents to show their appreciation for us. Lunch: Baked Spaghetti, Salad, Fruit, and all kinds of homemade cakes and cobblers. I thought to myself . . . spaghetti. . .desserts . . . oh my! Needless to say I went in there smiling big and fixed me a to-go bowl of salad and fruit (grapes and berries) and said “Thank You So Much!” To myself I was thinking “don’t look at the cake, don’t even look at it. . . 17 days, 2 weeks and 3 days!” However, I am now I’m back at my desk and I am fine! I am going to take my salad and fruit home with me and eat my tuna on top of the salad.
I am excited about this. I have prayed about it and God has given me a peaceful and joyful spirit about it. I am excited to see what the next 17 days has in store.
I look forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. However, I am not an expert. I can only share my journey and my outcome. I make no promises and I do not make any claims. I am just a friendly voice trying hard to fight a struggle that some many others in this world seems to have. However, I do want to do it with balance and dignity and respect for this body that the Lord has given me for I know that “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” Psalms 139:14
Now my husband has texted me and checked in with me several times today. He has told me he felt like a rabbit and I wanted so bad to say . . . don’t say that. . . be positive. However, instead I just decided to be positive myself and try to encourage him along. God has also taught me a long time ago you cannot influence change in anyone by pulling them your way kicking and screaming. So I will just keep encouraging him and looking for ways to make the next 17 days full of good foods that are good for us.
Of course when you begin anything you will also run up against opposition. So far today mine has come in the form of a gift. Thanks be to all those who worked so hard in doing this special thing and on any other given Monday I would have been thrilled. However, today our staff is being served by a group of parents to show their appreciation for us. Lunch: Baked Spaghetti, Salad, Fruit, and all kinds of homemade cakes and cobblers. I thought to myself . . . spaghetti. . .desserts . . . oh my! Needless to say I went in there smiling big and fixed me a to-go bowl of salad and fruit (grapes and berries) and said “Thank You So Much!” To myself I was thinking “don’t look at the cake, don’t even look at it. . . 17 days, 2 weeks and 3 days!” However, I am now I’m back at my desk and I am fine! I am going to take my salad and fruit home with me and eat my tuna on top of the salad.
I am excited about this. I have prayed about it and God has given me a peaceful and joyful spirit about it. I am excited to see what the next 17 days has in store.
I look forward to sharing it with anyone who is interested. However, I am not an expert. I can only share my journey and my outcome. I make no promises and I do not make any claims. I am just a friendly voice trying hard to fight a struggle that some many others in this world seems to have. However, I do want to do it with balance and dignity and respect for this body that the Lord has given me for I know that “I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” Psalms 139:14
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